Cowardly Admirer
by RiAddison
Summary: Two enemies are forced to share a tower...of course pranks will be pulled and patience tested. But what will happen when they discover there is a fine line between love and hate?
1. Chapter 1

Hi, this is my first Harry Potter fanfiction. Just to tell everyone, I have not read the books in a long time, so I might have things a bit mixed up. And in case anyone is wondering, this takes place in 7th year, but they are attending school instead of looking for Horcruxes.

Oh and I do not own Harry Potter, but I think everyone knows this.

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><p>'A hater is just a cowardly admirer…'<p>

Draco had heard the saying before, but never really believed it. He always figured it was said by sad, lonely people who needed some way to console themselves. But now he knew it was true, he was living it, had been for years. Ever since that fateful day, when he realized what a cockroach he really was…but sadly that didn't change what people saw on the outside. He was just too afraid to show people what was on the inside, the fear of rejection and the fear of his father, and not to mention Voldemort was just too great. But dwelling deep in that fear was the desire to tell her….

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><p>Hermione Granger pushed her way through the crowded hallways, shocked that she was Head Girl this year…but the shock slowly faded into annoyance when she remembered who Head Boy was…the slimy git, Draco Malfoy. Hermione turned the corner, contemplating ways to make Malfoy's life a living hell when she ran smack into the object of her musings.<p>

"Watch where you are going, filthy mudblood," Draco barked, trying to extract himself from underneath Hermione and the considerable weight of her books.

"Well maybe if you would stay out of my way, I wouldn't need to, bloody ferret," Hermione choked out, trying to free herself as well. Finally, her last nerve strained to the max, she growled, "Just stay still, will ya? You're just making things worse."

Surprisingly, the flaxen haired boy stilled, allowing Hermione to disengage their limbs. They were both unpredictably silent as the pushed themselves off the ground and dusted themselves off.

"Thanks Granger…not, well I'd love to say this has been fun, but ya know, I really don't like to lie," Draco sneered.

"Yea, like murdering and torturing people are so much better…" Hermione drawled sarcastically, smirking when she saw the anger cross his face.

"I would watch what you say, mudblood, you never know what might accidentally happen," Draco taunted, and with that walked away.

Hermione watched the Slytherin walk away, seething on the inside and itching to hex him, but instead she turned, heading towards the Gryffindors common room. She had planned on studying, but didn't feel like it anymore. Instead she longed for the comfort and carefree atmosphere that spending time with friends brought.

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><p>Harry and Ron were playing wizard chess when Hermione stormed in, and plopped in the chair next to them. They both stopped to gaze at their best friend, before exchanging knowing glances.<p>

"What did the bloody git, Malfoy, do now?" Ron asked.

"What hasn't he done? Not only is he a right foul bugger, he ran into me, threatened me and to top it all off, he's Head Boy…"

"But aren't you Head Girl…." Harry's voice faded as he put two and two together and realized why Hermione was so upset.

"That means you guys will have to share a tower and common room, right?" Ron asked dumbly, the information having to reach through several layers, before he comprehended it.

"Exactly, which is why I'm here, there is no way that I will stay in the same tower as Malfoy, different rooms or not," Hermione pushed herself up and proceeded to go up the stairs to the girls dormitory. Only to come back down a couple minutes later, with a look that could kill.

"What's wrong?"

"My stuff is gone, and I have been informed through a note that it has been moved to the Head Tower for my convenience," Hermione grated out, clutching said note in her hand.

"Well I guess that means you have to stay there tonight, huh?"

"Eventually yes, but not tonight, Harry, can I borrow a t-shirt? I plan to sleep right here in the common room, I don't wanna see the little cockroach again tonight."

After changing, Hermione curled up on one of the couches, talking with Harry and Ron until she dozed off.

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><p>Please review!<p> 


	2. Chapter 2

This is the second chapter, although it has been slightly changed to keep up with the storyline that I changed in the future chapters. Its not much, just a slight rewording and such. This story takes place in seventh year but it has a combination of the events of the Half-Blood Prince and Deathly Hallows.

Don't own Harry Potter…:)

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><p>Hermione awoke leisurely, wincing when the cricks in her neck protested at the movement. Groggily, she looked around, wondering where she was and why she was here. Then swiftly it all rushed back to her, sweeping across her mind like a raging river. She was Head Girl and she would have to be sharing a tower with the Head Boy, Draco Malfoy. With a groan, Hermione rolled over into her pillow, trying to forget everything and go back to sleep. But sadly, her overly active brain wouldn't let her; it was already planning the day, and figuring everything that needed to be done. So resigning herself to the inevitable, she got up and left before everyone woke up.<p>

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><p>In a different part of the castle, Draco, having slept on the couch as well, was jolted awake by a loud bang next to his ear.<p>

"What the h—!" he shouted, picking himself off the ground, then swinging around to glare at his best friend.

"Sorry, mate, didn't know you'd jump of the couch like a little girl," Blaise Zabini apologized, trying to keep an innocent face, regardless of the snickers coming from his mouth.

"Didn't know my ass," Draco grumbled, pushing his way past his pal on his way to the restroom.

Blaise just grinned, as he watched Draco walk away, that was nothing compared to what Granger might do, now that they'd be sharing a tower together. But then again, it was about time someone other than him treated Draco like that, maybe he'd stop acting like such a prick. Chuckling, he left the Slytherin common room and headed to class.

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><p>The rest of the day passed fairly uneventful, the only class Draco and Hermione had together was Potions. And then finally Hermione found herself pushing through the throngs of students to make her way to the Great Hall. She surveyed the Gryffindor table, her gaze catching on the vibrant red hair of one of her best friends. Slowly she made her way to the pair and sat down, smiling at view of Ron and Harry shoving their faces.<p>

"HowsitgoingHermione?" Ron asked around the mouthful of food he'd just taken a bit of.

"You know, one of these days you're going to choke," she informed them primly, "And everything's fine, until I start thinking about the fact that I'll be sharing a tower with the ferret tonight and every other night for the rest of the year. Ya know if there was ever a time for the war to start…"

"Hermione that's not funny, Harry has enough stress right now, without thinking about well, you-know-who," Ron loudly whispered.

"His name is Voldemort, Ron. It won't change anything if you don't use his name, you know," Harry said quietly.

"Yes, well I'm sorry Harry, I forgot about all the stress you're under, trying to find the Horcruxes and all. Speaking of which, any luck?"

Glumly, Harry looked over at his friends, "None, I've had a few more dreams, if that's what they are, but nothing else."

"Well we'll keep trying to help, just like Dumbledore wants you too."

"Thanks you guys," Harry said, as he smiled at his best friends.

Changing the subject, Ron interjected, "So 'Mione, nervous about sharing a room with the prat tonight?"

"I'm not sharing a room with him, you idi-ot!" Hermione choked, spraying everyone within hearing distance with pumpkin juice.

"Well, might as well be, I mean, you're gonna be sharing a common room and a bathroom…" Ron trailed off as he noticed the look on Hermione's face.

"I'm leaving, if I get there before he does, I won't have to think about any of things Ron just mentioned," she said, gathering her stuff and leaving.

But before she could leave the Great Hall she was intercepted by Professor McGonagall, and trailing behind her professor was the person she had been trying to avoid.

"Ms. Granger, as you are aware, you're Head Girl this year. This means a change in living quarters and responsibilities. If you'll come with me I will tell you the password and explain the aspects of this great honor." Finished, McGonagall turned on her heel, leaving the two to follow her.

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><p>Finally, after traveling for a bit, the trio stopped next to a beautiful painting of a golden sun that was slowly setting.<p>

"This is the entrance to the tower you will be sharing. You will of course have separate bedrooms, but the common room and bathroom will have to be shared," McGonagall explained, the sun finally setting all the way and the painting's silvery moon and stars appearing, "There is also a small kitchen, the house elves will provide you with anything you should wish to eat, but you may prepare your food yourself as well. As for duties, you guys will patrol together. You have the ability to give or take away points from the houses, but it will not be abused. But enough of that, it's getting late and I'm sure you wanna sleep. The password is "sand turtles".

After McGonagall left, Draco looked at Hermione, but she was rooted to the spot.

"Well Granger, if you want to spend the night in the drafty hallway, be my guest, I'm going to in."

Hermione snapped out of her trance as soon as the painting swung open to reveal a breathtaking room. The walls were stone, and the furniture was a shadowy, green stained wood. The couches and chairs were a dusky dark red with a few silver and gold pillows. The rest of the room was just as lovely, with accents of the two house colors showing. Hermione was in the midst of admiring the rest of the room when a door slamming caught her attention.

'Draco, of course, such a prick…' Hermione thought, as she noticed the door across from the one Draco just entered. Going to it, she opened it and was just as shocked as before. Her room was done in red and gold, and she had a magnificent queen-sized canopy bed in the middle of the room, dominating the space. Stepping inside and closing the door, Hermione realized how tired she really was. Without even bothering to change, she climbed on the bed and was almost instantly asleep.

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><p>Please review or my pet hippo, Mr. Hipposworth with track you down and get you with his hippo ninja powers, lol! XD<p> 


	3. Chapter 3

Enjoy and review!

Oh and I'd like to thank: Artemis Sagittarius Malfoy, chocolatesnipe, percabethfan1001, the blibbering humdinger, lovelyloony944, and desigirl97 for subscribing for a story alert for this story. Thank you!

And in response to reviews:

Artemis Sagittarius Malfoy: Blaise is awesome...and thank you for the reviews they mean alot.

percabethfan1001: Thank you, I will try to update as soon as I can. :)

Just An Above Average Malfoy: (Anonymous) Lol, well thank you whoever you are, and I know, pink is so his color...XD

Thank you everyone!

And again, I, Ri, does not own Harry Potter….lol.

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><p>The next morning Hermione woke up with an eagerness to get up and get ready for the day. The fact that it was the weekend did nothing to stop her enthusiasm. Gathering up a change of clothes, she made her way to the bathroom. Only to find the door was already closed, and steam already seeping from under the door. Annoyed that she had to wait for her shower, Hermione was about to bang on the thick door, when it opened and she found herself knocking on a dripping boy's forehead.<p>

"Do you mind, mudblood? I really want to keep my good looks, not that I expect you to understand, and your abuse is not helping," Draco sneered, his usual smirk in place.

"Don't worry, I don't think you'll have a problem keeping up on those nonexistent looks of yours, ferret face," Hermione countered, as she brushed past him and slammed the door.

Draco scoffed before grabbing his books and going down to breakfast.

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><p>Later, Draco sat in potions, wandering off in space as the teacher droned on about the effects of some potions. Normally he'd pay attention, but he was too jittery for that. He was trying to figure out how to get through the entire year having to share a tower with Hermione. He did like her, most times, but he knew that if anything happened between them…well it wouldn't be good. Not only were they completely different, but his father would never let him associate with a muggle-born witch. And not to mention, if Voldemort found out he was shirking his assignment, for a simple girl, then he would be dead, and so would Hermione. Nope, it simply wouldn't do, he didn't want to die, so he'd keep the act up, hoping he never slipped.<p>

Later, Draco was heading back to the tower, when he was intercepted by Blaise.

"Hey, Draco, how's sharing a tower with the know-it-all going so far? Has she sent you to the infirmary yet?"

"No, but she already gave me this lovely bruise on my forehead," Draco replied, pointing to his head.

"Where? I don't see a bruise…is it invisible?"

"No it's not invisible, you dolt," Draco exclaimed, pushing Blaise's face away, "But whatever, I'm not in the mood to talk to you, I've had a long day. I'm off to bed."

"You should, you're crankier than a banshee with a cavity," Blaise called to Draco's back as he walked away.

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><p>A sound made Draco look up as he entered the common room, looking up he found a green-faced Hermione staring back at him.<p>

"What the h- is on your face? You look like a hag…"

At the insult, Hermione snapped out of her stupor, "Hmph! For your information Malfoy, it's a face mask. It's supposed to exfoliate and improve my skin."

"Pssh, I don't think some green gunk is gonna make that horrid thing you call a face look any better…" Draco scoffed.

"Why you…you….ugh!"

"Cat got your tongue? Whatcha gonna do, hex me? You're such a goody two shoes, you wouldn't even try," Draco taunted.

"I won't hex you, cause you're not worth getting in trouble, but I might just forget about the rules, so watch your back, you narrow-minded prat!"

As Draco watched Hermione flounce off, he realized he was a bit afraid of what she would do, but also curious. The witch did have a mean side after all, it was very interesting.

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><p>Sorry this chapter is so short and that not much is happening, it will get better, I promise. Please review! I'll give you cookies!<p> 


	4. Chapter 4

Hey everyone! I hope you're not too mad at me that the last chapter was so short. I just felt it needed to end there, and when I tried to continue on and make it longer. It just failed and made it not flow as well. So I'm sorry, and to make it up to you, I posted two chapters instead of one. Enjoy and don't forget to review!

Oh and again, I do not own Harry Potter….duh!

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><p>Draco opened the door to his room, and stepped towards the bathroom, only to find the door shut and the sound of water running from inside. Thinking of ways to extract his tower mate from inside the bathroom, Draco didn't notice the sounds stop and was surprised when the door opened and a half naked witch stepped.<p>

"Gosh Granger, get some clothes on! I think I may have permanent damage to my eyes", Draco said, his eyes far from damaged as they skimmed over Hermione. She really was quite attractive, he thought, mentally shaking off that thought, he remembered he couldn't think like that.

"Shove off, Malfoy…."

Draco watched her walk to her room before he turned and stepped into the bathroom. Turning on the water, he undressed and stepped under the hot spray. Squeezing shampoo onto his hands, he proceeded to lather it into his hair, trying to relax and forget the thoughts going through his head.

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><p>The first thing Draco heard when he entered the Great Hall was people laughing, some outright and some trying to control themselves, but snickers still escaped. He was in the process of trying to figure out what was so funny when someone shouted.<p>

"Nice hair, Malfoy! Pink really suits you!"

Turning around to find out who said that, he soon realized that everyone was staring at him. Running out to the entrance, he stared at himself in the mirror. Standing out it bright contrast to his pale skin was his hair….his hot pink hair. Marching back into the Great Hall, and ignoring the laughs, he strode up to Hermione.

"I know this was you're doing, mudblood….now fix it! "

Hermione squinted up at him, "Wow Malfoy, that sure is an electric shade of hair color, never thought you'd look so good in pink."

"Oh cut the 'I'm-so-innocent' act, I know you did this!"

"I really don't know what you're talking about, Malfoy. You know, you really must speak to someone about these paranoid tendencies you keep having", Hermione countered, starting to turn back to her food.

"You can play dumb all you want, but you better watch your back!"

With that, Draco turned and stalked out of the Hall, blinding people as he went. That girl was really testing his patience, it didn't matter if he liked her or not, he was still a Malfoy and Malfoys were nothing without their pride. He would get back at her, if it was the last thing he did.

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><p>"That was bloody brilliant 'Mione! I've never seen hair so bright; I think it was even brighter than Tonk's. How'd you get his hair like that anyway," Ron questioned with a huge grin.<p>

Hermione smiled sheepishly, "Let's just say, the school has a huge stash of confiscated Weasley's Wizard Wheezes…"

"Again brilliant, but who would have thought that you would break the rules and use that stuff…but how did you get it on his hair without him noticing? If I remember the twin's products correctly, it has to stay in the hair for quite a while."

"Well you know, I've heard that the Malfoy's don't have perfect hair naturally, they need to condition….if you know what I mean," Hermione replied, winking.

Harry, who up to now had stayed quiet, amusement on his face, spoke up, "I wonder how long it will stay that way?"

"I'm not sure; I think the one I used was an experimental product, so I really have no idea…"

"Excellent!"

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><p>A couple weeks went by, and Draco avoided Hermione and vice versa, only seeing each other in passing as they made their rounds. And Hermione was starting to think Draco had forgotten his revenge, well at least she thought, until…<p>

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><p>End of chapter 4….what's Draco gonna do to Hermione…duh duh duhhhhh! Stay tuned for more…though it might be a little bit until I update again. PLEASE REVIEW!<p> 


	5. Chapter 5

Hi everyone! I'm updating…yay! Hope you guys like it, and thanks to everyone who has read and reviewed and those of you who have added this story to your alert list. Oh and btw, I have a Ron/Luna one-shot that I will hopefully be posting soon, keep an eye out for it!

It had been a long day, filled with homework, quizzes and studying, of which Hermione was currently engaged in. She was presently flipping through a stack of books, trying to find the best one with which to study. She was half way through the stack when her eyes began to droop, the past couple weeks catching up with her. She hadn't been sleeping well, always on guard, trying to anticipate when Malfoy would strike. But instead of staying one step ahead, she had been running herself haggard. The last thought before she dozed off was that Malfoy was really a horrible, nasty git.

Draco had been observing Hermione the past couple weeks, and had seen her slowly becoming more and more frazzled. He felt bad, but he wasn't about to let her off the hook. For Merlin's sake, the bloody woman had dyed his hair pink, and though it had faded a bit, it still was not gone. He was contemplating ways to get back at her, as he entered the Head tower. As he stepped inside his ears were met with a soft whistling noise, he turned and found Hermione fast asleep amongst towering stacks of books. Walking over he gazed at her face, which was now peaceful in sleep. Reaching out he brushed a tendril of hair off her cheek. As the lock of hair brushed over his knuckle, he got an idea. Going back to his room he proceeded to dig around in his trunk, looking for something Blaise had given his at Christmas. With success he pulled out a wand, of course he had never used it, what with it being a Weasley product and all, but desperate times called for desperate measures. Striding back to the slumbering witch, he waved the wand in the air above her and snuck back into his room, being very careful not to wake her.

Hermione awoke, a huge crick in her neck, and glanced over at her watch. That done she started to slowly get up, only to grab her watch again and swear.

"Damn! I'm late! Dear Merlin, I hope I didn't miss anything good," she exclaimed, hurriedly throwing her stuff in her bag and dashing out of the tower.

The first thing Hermione heard when she walked into class was laughing, or in some cases bellowing. Wondering what was so funny, she made her way to her seat, and so did every eye in the classroom. Feeling uncomfortable with the attention, Hermione ignored them and took out her book, and focused her gaze on the teacher, who was also laughing and staring straight at her.

"What's everyone staring at?" Hermione demanded, glaring at her fellow students.

A nearby girl headed Hermione a mirror, "Look for yourself."

Hermione grabbed the mirror apprehensively, dread settling in her stomach. Holding the mirror in her shaking hands, she slowly looked and saw a full mustache and beard staring back at her. With a gasp, she dropped the mirror and ran out of the room, her embarrassment evident.

Trudging up the stairs to the infirmary, Hermione tried to hide her face as much as possible, but the beards bushiness just couldn't be contained. As she walked into the room, Madame Pomfrey clucked and ushered her unto a chair.

"Well dearie, what do we have here?" she asked, looking closely at Hermione, "Oh yes, this looks like one of the Weasley's products, a fake wand I believe."

Hermione rolled her eyes, as Madame Pomfrey bustled away, who would've thought that the two of them would think alike and use things they would've never have used before. Ugh, why didn't she just hex him when she had the chance, and deal with the consequences as they came. But she had started it, and she wasn't about to end it now, Malfoy would wish he had never messed with her when this was over. But right now she needed to focus on how to rid herself of this annoyingly itchy facial hair.

"Well my dear, I have good news and bad news. The good news is that this can be reversed, but the bad thing is I am out of the reversing wands that the Weasley's provided me with."

"Great! So I either have to owl them or go down to Hogsmeade and get one. Yea, that's gonna work, I'll just go and ask Mrs. McGonagall right now, I'm sure she'll let me go," Hermione said sarcastically, storming out of the infirmary.

Irritated, she made her way to McGonagall's office, when she got there she used the password to let herself in.

"Mrs. McGonagall?"

"Yes Ms. Granger? What is it that you needed," McGonagall answered, as she turned, "Oh Merlin! What happened to you, dear?"

"Malfoy…he used one of twins' wands on me. Which is why I'm here," Hermione muttered, "Madame Pomfrey is out of reversing wands, and I need permission to go into Hogsmeade and get one."

"Yes, I see. Well I can't let you go by yourself off course, you know," she replied, writing a note and sending it off, "Since Mr. Malfoy was the one who did this, and since I'm aware that he wants to get his normal hair color back."

Hermione flushed, "Yea, about that…"

"I don't need details Ms. Granger. But in light of all of that, I am sending Mr. Malfoy with you."

"What! How do you know he won't hand me off to the nearest threat? He's probably a Death Eater you know," Hermione shouted.

"Ms. Granger!" McGonagall said disapprovingly, giving her a stern look, "I'm aware that Mr. Malfoy's family has a reputation, but until he is proven guilty, you are to assume he is a regular student, albeit one with radical views of other wizards. Now you will meet Mr. Malfoy at the Room of Requirement and proceed to Hogsmeade. Please make sure you are back before curfew and be safe, now go!"

Hermione, who had up till now been sitting in shocked silence, snapped back to the present and walked out of the office.

Review, review, review! Please...*puppy dog eyes*


	6. Chapter 6

Hi! Here's the sixth chapter, hope you like it. Sorry the chapters aren't longer, I'm trying to make them longer, but I want the story to flow as well, but I hope you enjoy the story anyway. Review! Oh and thank you for everyone who has added this to their alerts, and faves, and has reviewed, I would name everyone, but its getting to be to many people. Yay! But I'm sure you all know who you are. And I especially want to thank Just Your Above Average Malfoy, who has done all of that, including adding me to her fave authors and author alert. Thank you so much!

Again, don't own Harry Potter….good thing too…cuz Draco and Hermione would totally be a couple...lol...

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><p>Hermione rushed through halls towards the Room of Requirement, wanting to get to Hogsmeade and get this whole thing sorted out. The less time she had to spend with Malfoy the better. Turning the corner, she saw the object of her loathing leaning against the wall, his usual smirk in place as he watched her walk up to him.<p>

"Malfoy," she acknowledged, "Let's get this over with…"

"Whatever you say," he mocked, "Ladies first…"

We need to get to Hogsmeade, we need to go Hogsmeade, Hermione thought, as she paced in front of the wall. After about half a dozen paces, a door appeared. Hermione stopped, her hand reaching for the door at the same time as Draco. As their hands brushed, and they both froze, giving each other startled looks. Draco recovered first, jerking his hand away, leaving Hermione wondering what had just happened.

"You gonna open the door," Draco's contemptuous voice drilled its way into Hermione's brain.

"Of course, you dolt," Hermione sneered, jerking the door open and going through.

As she stepped out into the Weasley's Wizard Wheezes back room, she could hear Draco behind her. Looking around, she spotted Fred working at a table, his back to them and a Muggle mp3 player jammed into his ear.

"Hey Fred," Hermione said quietly.

"'Mione!" Fred cried, scooping Hermione into a big hug, a big grin on his face as he released her and saw the beard, "What happened?"

"That git did this," Hermione replied, jerking a finger towards the silent blond.

"Never thought I'd say it, Malfoy, but good one," Fred congratulated, earning a glare from the witch, "So what happened to you?"

Draco nodded towards Hermione, who looked a sheepishly proud.

"You did that," he asked, the redhead shocked that the goody-two shoes would actually prank someone, "Ah, you must of found Filch's stash, I was wondering where that prototype had gone…oh well, we made it better after it went missing. We also made a removal potion, lucky for you, Malfoy."

"Yes, well what do you expect when we have to share a common room? Anyway, the point is, we both used you guy's products and Madame Pomfrey is fresh out of reversing wands. So we need your help."

"Wait a second, let me go ask George where he put the reversing products, he rearranged back here and I can't find anything."

As Fred left to go talk to his twin, Hermione looked over at Draco, expecting to see him standing and silently pouting. Surprised she found him looking around curiously, no sign of malice in his eyes. Hermione was about to say something, when Fred waltzed back into the room with his twin brother trailing behind him.

"Hermione, how are you?" George yelled, hugging her just as tight as his brother had, "Well you know besides the beard thing and having to live with that git."

"I'm doing pretty good, could be better. You know being Head girl isn't as much fun as I thought it would be," Hermione replied.

"Well, let's see, the reversing wands will cost ya 5 galleons, and the color removal potion is 6 galleons…" Fred's voice trailed off as he started rummaging through a nearby trunk.

"Fine," Draco drawled, handing the money over to the George, as Fred appeared next to his twin, his arms full of wands and a colorful bottle labeled "Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes Color Removal".

"I can pay for myself you know," Hermione declared, an icy tinge in her voice.

"Yea, well Granger how are you supposed to when you don't have any money on you, huh? But if that's the way you wanna play, I'll be more than happy to pay for just mine," he replied with an arrogant smirk as he started to hand the pull the money away.

"NO! I mean, thanks, I'll pay you back…" Hermione said awkwardly.

Draco just smirked as he handed the wand back to Hermione, "Now can we leave, I have classes tomorrow, and I can think of better ways to spend my time than with you."

"Fine," Hermione snapped, and started for the door.

"Wait 'Mione, could you take the rest of these wands and give them to Madam Pomfrey, so she doesn't have to make the trip herself?"

"Sure, and thanks again for the help," she responded, then turned and made her way through the door.

When they were both back at Hogwarts, Hermione turned to Draco, "This is never to be spoken of again, ok?"

Draco remained silent as he watched her walk away down the hall. He might not speak of it again, but that didn't stop him from thinking about it. Even now, his mind was on the moment their hands had brushed, and the little jolt of electricity he'd felt. He wondered if she'd felt it too, but pushed the thought away as soon as it had formed. Of course she hadn't, and even if she had, she had probably dismissed it as a fluke or something of the sort. As he thought about this, he was unaware that in a different part of the castle, someone else was just the tiniest bit focused on it as well, though she would never admit it.

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><p>I hope you liked it, I had trouble when I wrote this, but I'm edited parts, so I hope its better. Review and tell me what you think!<p> 


	7. Chapter 7

Hey you guys! Its chapter 7, yay! I have gone was past my four chapter curse…lol. Oh and just so everyone knows, I made up the love potion, minus the ashwinder eggs, which is really in Amortentia. The potion means "love sight" in Latin. And again, I don't own Harry Potter…duh!

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><p>The next day Hermione decided to skip breakfast and go to the library to get a head start on her plan of payback on Draco. In the library Hermione went straight to the potion books, grabbing a few she settled at a nearby table. Flipping through the pages, she stopped when she found what she was looking for.<p>

AMORVISUM:

2 ashwinder eggs

5 lovage leaves, finely chopped

Pulp of passionfruit

Hermione skimmed through the ingredient list, her eyes stopping on the explanation of the potions effects.

"The effects of the potion produce a strong infatuation in the drinker causing the drinker to believe he/she is in love with the next man/woman they see. The length of the effects can vary depending on length of time potion is strengthened. This potion is quite unusual because it is odorless, colorless and tasteless, making it quite easy to disguise."

Closing the book, Hermione grabbed her stuff and headed toward Madam Pince's desk to check it out. She was eager to get a start on it…she was sure Draco was gonna love it…literally…

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><p>A few weeks after the visit to Hogsmeade, Draco was spending some quality time with his best mate in the empty Great Hall.<p>

"So has sharing a tower with the Gryffindor Princess gotten any easier," Blaise asked, grabbing the two of them some butterbeer and joining Draco at the Slytherin table.

"She's been awfully quiet ever since we got the pranks reversed. She barely responds when I insult her, its kinda suspicious. It's like she's planning something..." Draco responded, taking a sip.

"Yea, but don't you think she would have done something by now if she was planning something?"

"Point taken, but maybe she's waiting till I let my guard down. You know, she is quite cunning I've found out. Minus the upstanding sense of honor and uprightness, she would make an awesome Slytherin, as much as it pains me to say that."

The two of them were so busy talking they didn't notice her until a well-placed suit of suit of armor tripped her up. The clatter instantly drew both sets of eyes to the girl lying in a heap.

"PEEVES!" Hermione yelled, dusting herself off, looking around her eyes made contact with Draco's.

Oh shoot, Hermione thought, he was supposed to see Luna, not me. I really hope this doesn't backfire on me, where is that girl anyway!

Draco was very concerned. She'd run into that armor pretty hard and he hoped she was ok. Opening his mouth to ask that very thing, "You okay, Hermione?"

"What do you care, ferret? And did you just call me Hermione," she asked, smirking victoriously in her head.

"No, I meant…er…I meant, nice one Mudblood!" Draco managed to bumble out, mentally chastising himself.

"Whatever," Hermione sneered, walking out of the Great Hall.

"What was that about, mate? Why'd ya call Granger by her name and why do you even care if she was okay," Blaise asked, giving Draco a confused look.

"I don't know, it's like I couldn't help myself, almost like I was under a spell," Draco lied, "Anyway, let's get out of here, to many Gyrffindors here.

"I agree…"

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><p>As Hermione stomped up the stairs, she silently fumed. Why hadn't the stupid potion worked, she had followed every step, and it had turned out just like it said it should have. Arriving back at the tower, Hermione pulled the book out and read through it again, trying to find out how it had gone wrong. Skimming through it again, Hermione's eye caught a small footnote located at the very bottom.<p>

"The potion creates an infatuation, not to be confused with real love. As such the potion will not work if the drinker is already in love with the next person he/she sees."

That was it, Hermione thought, sitting back and sighing. Draco must be in love and that's why it hadn't worked. Well that sucks, she thought, she had really wanted to see him make a fool of himself, thinking he was in love with Luna. The depression lasted a few seconds until utter horror crept over her as she realized that she had been the first person he had seen, which must mean that Draco Malfoy must be in love….with her. No, no, that couldn't be possible, she thought, shaking her head. He hated her…he was always calling her a Mudblood, and insulting her looks. No, she must be mistaken she probably had made an error in the potion. But as she thought about it, he had had a very concerned look on his face when she had fallen, and he had asked her if she was alright. And she couldn't forget the fact that he had called her Hermione. Oh great, that meant that Malfoy really did love her, she thought, this was ghastly.

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><p>Hey, in my chapter 6 someone commented that there was not much action, but I promise it gets better. I want to keep it in character, and if it moves to fast they are not always in character. I have written chapter 8 and it gets better. So stay tuned for chapter 8! Please review!<p> 


	8. Chapter 8

Yo! How is everyone liking the story so far? So there hasn't been much Dramione yet, but I'm hoping this chapter will fix that. I had writer's block at the beginning of this chapter, but I think I managed to get past it pretty well. Remember review and tell me what you thought. Bye!

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><p>The next day Hermione snuck out hoping to avoid Draco, he had been on her mind way to much since her discovery last night, and went to track down Luna. She found the girl on the third floor talking with a painting about nargles.<p>

"Luna!"

Turning Luna glanced at Hermione with a vague expression, "Oh hi Hermione, what are you doing here? Have you come to discuss nargles with us?"

"No!" Hermione barked, feeling contrite as she saw the hurt flash on Luna's face, it wasn't her fault that she couldn't seem to shake the Slytherin out of her mind, "I mean, no, I actually wanted to ask you what had happened yesterday? I thought we were supposed to meet in the Great Hall?"

"Oh yea, I'm sorry. I got distracted thinking about…well I don't remember what I was thinking about, but by the time I remembered and came down, no one was there."

"Oh, well it's in the past, so no use crying over spilled milk…" Hermione said, sighing.

"Why would you cry over spilled milk," Luna asked a confused look on her face.

"Nevermind, it's a Muggle saying. I'll talk to you later Luna, I gotta go," Hermione replied.

"Ok, bye Hermione! Tell Ron to watch out for the Wrackspurts!"

Hermione just shook her head and turned back the way she came. As she made her way back to the Head Tower, she couldn't stop thinking about Draco, and how he had actually seemed to care earlier. She mentally shook herself, irritated at Malfoy and what he seemed to be doing to her.

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><p>Storming into the common room, Hermione was in no mood to encounter Draco Malfoy who was lounging on one of the couches, flipping through a magazine.<p>

"What's got your knickers in twist, Granger?" Draco drawled lazily.

Hermione stopped in midstride as she made her way to her room, "Shove off Malfoy, I'm in a right foul mood and I won't be responsible for my actions…"

"Ohhhh, I'm so scared, goody-two shoes Granger is threatening me," Draco sneered, fighting the urge to ask her what was wrong for the second time today.

Stomping over to the loveseat, she pushed the magazine away and grabbed Draco by the collar and smashed her lips to his. The kiss deepened as Draco kissed her back, but it wasn't long before Hermione finally came to her senses and pushed him away.

"Wow Granger…where did that come from?" Draco asked, stunned and unable to come up with an insult.

Hermione blushed, her hand coming up to cover her mouth as she rushed out of the room, back in the relative safety of her room. Once there Hermione had a chance to think about what she had done. Had she really just kissed Draco Malfoy, the Slytherin Prince, the boy who thought all Muggle-borns where scum? She remembered being angry at him for not being able to stop thinking about him, and when he had taunted her, she had snapped. Her emotions got out of hand and the next thing she knew she was kissing him. And she couldn't help but notice he wasn't exactly pushing her away like he should have been. Oh my gosh, she thought, he did like her. And against her better judgment she seemed to be attracted to him. And although it was only an attraction, it could very easily turn into something else if given the chance. That was it; she just wouldn't give it a chance. But as Hermione tried to fall asleep, she realized that it was gonna be easier said than done.

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><p>Draco didn't move until long after Hermione had rushed back into her room. He sat frozen trying to piece together what had just happened. Hermione, the know-it-all Gryffindor, the girl who hated his guts and the one who had punched him in third year…had kissed him of all people. He didn't know what to think of it, he knew he couldn't ever get involved with her, but that didn't stop his heart from wanting it. Remembering his mission, he realized that as much as he longed to, none of this could go any farther. As he put a hand up to his lips, he thought how much he was really gonna miss that.<p>

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><p>The next day the Gryffindors and the Slytherins had Potions together, something Hermione was dreading as she met up with Ron and Harry.<p>

"Hey Hermione, ready for Potions," Harry asked.

"About as much as Ron is for studying…" Hermione growled, trudging along.

"What's wrong 'Mione?"

"Nothing," she sighed, walking a bit faster, "Let's just get to Potions, if we're late again, Professor Slughorn will take 10 points away from Gryffindor."

As Hermione entered the classroom her eyes met Draco's. He raised an eyebrow, as if asking for an explanation for the night before. She responded to his unvoiced question with a glare and stuck her tongue out at him. But before she looked away, she saw his amused expression, which only made her glare at him again.

"Calm down class, the next couple classes we will be brewing some high level potions. Therefore I will be dividing you into two person teams and they will be your partner until the holidays," Slughorn addressed the class.

Hermione looked up when she heard him mention the teams, she really hoped she lucked out and didn't get Draco. But as usual, luck had run out on Hermione.

"Hermione Granger," Slughorn said, smiling fondly at Hermione, "and Draco Malfoy, you two will be working on Dreamless Sleep Potion."

Internally Hermione groaned, this was not going according to plan, she was supposed to be avoiding him, not working alongside him. Across the room, Draco was having similar thoughts, though his had tinges of pleasure at getting to work with the brunette.

"Ok, please, gather your things and sit with your partners…"

"Bloody hell Hermione, you have to share a room with the git and now he gets you as a partner. I was hoping I'd get you, now I'm partners with Neville," Ron said gloomily, dropping his head in his hands, "I'm gonna fail for sure now."

Hermione shook her head as she made her way over to the table Draco was sitting at.

"What's the matter Granger, you couldn't stay away," Draco drawled, "I mean I know I'm hot, but couldn't you be a little bit less obvious."

"Belt it, Malfoy, we have work to do," Hermione snapped, settling in the seat next to him.

"So its Malfoy is it? I thought you'd be calling me by my name after that snog last night," Draco taunted lazily, making no move to start work.

"Malfoy, will you shut up already and help me," Hermione said, trying to ignore him and concentrate on the potion, which she was sure she was gonna need to take if the person next to her wouldn't stay out of her head.

"My my, Granger, we are grumpy this morning aren't we? Wake up on the wrong side of the bed," Draco continued, enjoying watching her try to restrain herself from insulting him back.

"Malfoy, just shut up," frustrated, Hermione didn't realize she had spoken so loudly until Professor Slughorn came over and told them to stop talking and get to work.

The two students bent over their textbooks, working in surprisingly good harmony with each other, neither one saying more than they had to. Before they knew it, the class was over and they were bottling up their potion and handing it in. As Hermione gathered her stuff she realized that she and Draco were the only two students left in the room.

"Granger," Draco said hesitantly, stopping Hermione before she left.

"What do you want now Malfoy? If it's got anything to do with last night I don't wanna hear it," Hermione said, nervous being this close to him, he made her feel things that she shouldn't be thinking about him.

"I just wanted to apologize for being such a prick earlier, it was uncalled for, but I have to admit it was fun seeing you get so angry," Draco said, starting out very uncharacteristically Malfoy-like, but reverting back to his old self at the end.

"Um…you're forgiven, I guess, though it doesn't mean I hate you any less," Hermione said her thoughts a bit muddled after his apology, if that's what you could call it.

'So does that mean we have a truce?" Draco asked, holding out his hand.

Hermione nodded as she took his hand. As their hands met electricity raced up both of their arms, giving them both a pleasant but unwanted tingle in their chests. This time Hermione recovered first as she dropped his hand and all but raced out of the room.

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><p>Well that's the end of that chapter, it was originally a lot shorter, but I got inspired and it grew… :) I hope everyone is enjoying it and aren't to disappointed with how slow the Dramione moments are progressing. I know Draco is OOC when he apologizes, but come on, he likes Hermione, isn't that OOC enough? Anyway, thanks for reading. Please review!<p> 


	9. Chapter 9

Tally ho, good folks! Lol, I like using British phrases…even if it does make me look and sound a bit foolish. Anyway, here is chapter 9, which I was procrastinating on working on, but when I finally sat down to write it, it only took me an hour which is good. The Dramione is starting to pick up, especially in this chapter. I hope you guys like and still don't think I'm going to slow. I'm rather new at writing romances, since the ones I usually start I never finish. Lol, and when they hate each other it makes it even harder to write a believable romance that keeps people interested. But I vow to try harder!

Don't own Harry Potter….which makes me sad….:(

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><p>After dinner that night, Hermione decided she needed a break from her own mind and the jumbled thoughts swirling around in it. So she met up with her best girl friend in the Gryffindor common room for some gossip, homework and butterbeer, which unfortunately didn't happen.<p>

"Hermione" Ginny Weasley squealed, pulling Hermione into a tight hug, "Have you been avoiding me? I haven't seen you in ages."

Hermione looked away, because in all truthfulness she had been. Ginny could always see right through her and her possible feelings for Draco was not something she wanted to discuss at the present time, "Sorry Ginny, I haven't been meaning to, but I've been so busy with Head duties and homework, that I didn't realize people might miss my company."

"Well I'm telling you right now, you need to lighten up and have more fun, this closing yourself off cannot be good for you. And neither is keeping secrets, so come on up to my room and tell me about it, I'll paint your nails while we talk," Ginny said, dragging Hermione up the stairs.

When they were sitting on Ginny's bed with beauty products spread out all over and Hermione's nails in the process of getting painted with Muggle nail polish, Ginny demanded, "Ok, now spill it, something's been bothering you, and its been making you avoid us."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Hermione said, brushing off Ginny's comments, "So why are we using Muggle nail polish anyway?"

"Because I like using it, taking the time to actually paint them and not just zap your nails, is therapeutic. And I know what your doing, now spill! Oh and what color?"

"Fine," Hermione sighed, pointing to the dark gray, "Well you know how I've been sharing a tower with Malfoy, well we started pranking each other, and then I gave him this love potion, that was supposed to make him think he was in love with Luna but he saw me instead, but it didn't work and I found out its because he already loves me, and now I can't stop thinking about the stupid git and I really think I might falling for him. Oh Ginny what am I gonna do? I can't fall in love him, he's a Slytherin and probably a Death Eater."

"Wow, I knew you were keeping a secret, but even I couldn't have imagined that this is what it was," Ginny replied, a bit shell-shocked, "And how do you know he's a Death Eater? Also there is nothing wrong with him being a Slytherin, heck he probably had the same thoughts about you being a Gryffindor. So I say stop thinking so much and just see where it leads, even though Malfoy annoys me to no end, if you guys were together I would behave myself because you're my friend. Now I'm finished with the pep talk and also with your nails, which look fabulous, which is totally because I did them."

Hermione chuckled at the smug smirk on her friends face, "Thanks Ginny I really needed to talk to you, I really need to stop trying to rely on myself all the time. Oh by the way, I forgot to tell you I might have snogged him yesterday night."

"You did what? And why didn't you tell me this earlier? This is big news Hermione," Ginny shouted.

"Well I kinda didn't tell you earlier, because I just told you about it like 2 minutes ago," Hermione responded, plugging her ears against the onslaught of Ginny's high pitched screams, "Will you stop that already?"

"Oh sorry, it's just this is huge, I can't believe you kissed him. So," Ginny said, leaning over, "was he a good snog?"

"Ginny!" Hermione cried, appalled, before giggling and responding, "Actually it was wonderful, I guess its true that bad boys really are better snogs."

Giggling, Ginny asked, "So are you gonna kiss him again?"

"I don't know, I wanna work through my feelings first, but you never know," Hermione replied, giggling, "Well I gotta go, it's almost curfew."

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><p>Hermione made it back to the Head's common room 15 minutes after curfew, only to find Draco occupying one of the couches.<p>

"Out late, Granger, tsk tsk, first you starting snogging random people and now you're back after curfew," Draco drawled, as he stood and sauntered over to her.

His teasing had the intended reaction, as Hermione retorted, irritated, "I told you to stop mentioning that, and why do you care that I'm back after curfew, shouldn't you be happy that I could've gotten in trouble."

Draco smirked, as he walked around her before leaning over and whispering in her ear, "You know you're even cuter when you're all riled up."

Hermione shivered, as his warm breath tickled her ear, "Did you really just say I'm cute? Aren't you supposed to hate me?"

He chuckled, his breath tickling her ear again, "And aren't you supposed to hate me? But after the way you kissed me last night I guess we are both acting quite uncharacteristically, now aren't we?"

"I don't know why I kissed you," Hermione whispered back honestly, still slightly confused about her feelings for the blonde boy, "But if you're just playing with me to get back at me for the pranks, just stop it right now."

"Darling," he whispered, leaning down, his lips almost touching hers, "who says I'm playing?"

Draco leaned down the rest of the way, pressing his lips softly to hers. Sighing Hermione raised her shaking hands to grasp his face, as he deepened the kiss. They continued kissing until they had to finally stop because they couldn't breathe. Gathering her in his arms, Draco held her tight, not wanting to let her go. Finally he was forced to as he saw that she looked awfully tired and was lightly dozing in his arms. Grabbing her hand he led her to her room and pushed her lightly in, and telling her to go to sleep, before closing the door gently behind her. Then he returned to his room, a genuine smile on his face as he drifted off to sleep.

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><p>Well how'd everyone like it? If you didn't I don't care, I like it, and to a point thats all that matters. Btw, I don't know why but I've always wanted to hear Draco call someone "Darling", lol. Anyhow, please review and add to alerts so you don't miss anything!<p> 


	10. Chapter 10

Wow, chapter 10 already? I can't believe it, seems like I just started. So, I can feel the tone of this fic change, it almost feels like my writing has improved, which I don't think is true. But I have been listening to music while writing lately, which really helps keep me focused and write better. Well I don't think you guys can complain about the amount of action in this chapter. I told you guys it was coming….well enjoy, by the way, the abandoned tower probably does not exist, I just needed a place for them to run into each other. And yes its awfully fluffy, I blame the ferrets…XD

Don't own anything….*tear*

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><p>Draco woke slowly, a smile alighted his features as he remembered the dream he'd had last night. He'd been kissing Hermione and holding her, she had seemed so real in his dream. Gradually his smile got bigger as he recalled it hadn't been a dream, they had really kissed. He couldn't recall what had caused him to, it was like he wasn't in control of his actions, but he was glad he did, he'd never felt this happy. Getting up and getting dressed, he thought about how he couldn't wait to see her.<p>

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><p>In her room, Hermione awoke the same time as Draco, a similar smile on her lips as she remembered their honeyed kisses last night. He had been so gentle with her, so unlike his usual self that she found it easy to admit to herself that falling in love with him wouldn't be such a bad thing. But even as she thought about that, she realized that she would have to see him again today, and even though she had loved it, it had been her first kiss. Giggling, she buried her face in her pillow, until she decided she needed to forget about that and get dressed.<p>

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><p>The common room was silent until the creak of doors opening disturbed the serene peacefulness. The disturbers of the quiet both looked up at the sound, right into each others eyes. As Hermione's chocolate eyes met Draco's grey, she felt her face turn bright red with a blush.<p>

"Good morning Hermione…" Draco said, calling her by her first name out loud for the first time, though he'd always thought of her as such, "Sleep well?"

Hermione blushed even more at the use of her first name, "Good morning, D-Draco," she responded, hesitating a little bit on his name.

Draco felt a thrill of pleasure at the sound of his name on her lips, as he slowly made his way over to her. Putting a finger under her chin, he raised her face to his, "Have I told you that you're adorable when you blush", then pressed a quick kiss to her upturned lips.

Hermione sighed and leaned against him for a moment, before gasping a straitening up, "We're gonna be late to class!"

Chuckling, Draco watched her hurriedly gather her books and make her way to the portrait, "Some things never change, you're still a goody-goody."

Turning, her hands on her hips, she asked, "Well are you coming or not?"

"Yea, yea, stop your nagging," he grumbled good-naturedly, moseying towards the portrait.

After they were standing outside the tower, Hermione turned to Draco and asked, "Well I have Charms, so I'll see you later, k?"

Draco smiled at her, "Of course."

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><p>The day seemed to drag on for Hermione, who was for once not paying attention in class. Harry noticed this, and for the fifth time nudged her. Startled out of her daydream state, Hermione frowned at Harry.<p>

"What's wrong with you, pay attention!" he hissed, pointing to the front of the classroom where Professor Binns was droning on and on about something absolutely boring.

Yawning, Hermione raised her hand, "Y-yes Ms. Granger?" The ghost of a professor asked, startled at being interrupted.

"I'm not feeling so good, is it ok if I go to the infirmary?" Hermione asked.

"Sure, I'll have Ronald and Harry, write you notes for the rest of the class," Professor Binns told her.

Hermione gathered her books and whispered to her two best friends, "I'll talk to you guys later."

As she made her way out of the classroom, she missed the equally stunned and jealous looks on their faces, as they realized that the goody-goody Hermione Granger was skipping class.

Making her way down the halls, Hermione tried to think of a good place to sit and think, when she remembered the abandoned tower on the east side of the castle. Climbing up the stairs, she tried to avoid making noise as much as possible. Reaching the top, she stood on the edge, savoring the free feeling being up so high gave her. A sound made her jump, just as a pair of strong arms wrapped around her and a soft voice whispered in her ear.

"Be careful, darling, we don't want you to fall," Draco whispered in her ear.

Turning Hermione gazed up at him, "How'd you find me?"

"I didn't, I had no idea you were up here. I come up here when I skip class, because it's a good place to sit and relax. Which is what I was doing, until a certain beautiful witch, almost tumbles over the edge, causing me to interrupt my relaxing and save her. Sometimes it's such a bother being good," he scolded her gently.

"Well I guess it's a good thing I have such a handsome wizard looking out for me, isn't it?" Hermione asked mischievously, her hand caressing his cheek, and then slowly wrapping its way around his neck. Pulling gently, she drew his head down to hers and kissed him. It was different from their other kisses; it was more tender and sweet, almost chaste. Pulling away, Draco tucked her head under his chin and held her, as he asked, "So, your being up here must mean you skipped class too? I'm surprised."

Leaning a bit out of his embrace to glance up at him, she asked, "And what exactly is that supposed to mean?"

"It means, my dear, that you have a reputation for being a stickler for rules. I'm just surprised that you skipped class and wound up here of all places."

"Oh," she replied, snuggling closer, "well I couldn't concentrate anyway, so I figured what's the point in staying in class."

"Interesting…." Draco drawled the signature smirk on his face.

Hermione blushed and remained silent, which only made Draco's smirk get bigger, as he knew by her silence what had caused her lack of concentration.

"Well just so you know," he whispered softly to her, pressing a kiss on her forehead, "I'm glad I'm the reason you can't concentrate."

Pretending to be outraged, Hermione exclaimed, before starting to walk down the stairs, "Who said it was you? For all you know it could've been the fairies. I hear they enjoy tormenting us poor mortals."

He just laughed, grabbing her hand and pulling her down to sit next to him. And that's is how they stayed, at least until the growls of their stomachs alerted them that it was time for dinner.

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><p>REVIEW! I hope you liked it, and please if you have something rude to say about it that is not constructive criticism, please PM me. And I know that Draco is OOC, but honestly underneath all his meanness, how do you know there isn't a secret nice, sensitive, and sweet guy, that got buried a long time ago and just wants to be uncovered by Hermione? Thank you and stay tuned for chapter 11!<p> 


	11. Chapter 11

Hey, hope you guys have enjoyed the past chapters. I've been really pumping them out, and they haven't been forced, so I hope they flow ok and make sense. I had a song called "Run, Devil, Run" by Ke$ha, though the original was done by the Korean group Girls' Generation, which might have influenced part of this chapter, lol. Again hope ya like it!

Own Harry Potter I don't….lol, a little Yoda for y'all….:)

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><p>The pair made their way down from the tower, and held hands as they walked to the Great Hall. As Hermione was about to step through the entry, she was yanked back.<p>

"What's wrong?" she asked with a puzzled look on her face.

"Well, everyone in the school still thinks we're enemies, so what do you think is gonna happen when we waltz in there hand in hand?" Draco asked, "I don't know about you, but I don't want to be hexed to death by Potter and the Weasel?"

"Hey, they still are my friends you know, and I can see what you mean, so what do we do? It will still be kinda suspicious if you come in right after me and we don't fight about anything," Hermione pointed out.

"Well, how about I go in first and you "accidentally" run into me, and then we can pretend to bicker like we used to?"

"Yea, that could work for now, at least until I break the news to Harry and Ron," Hermione replied.

"Ready for the debut of your acting career, remember we have to be convincing, think ya can handle it?" Draco smirked.

"Oh you bet I can, I bet I have more acting skills in my pinky finger than you do," Hermione responded back sassily.

"Retract your claws, little kitten," Draco retorted, chuckling.

"Let's get this over with, I'm getting hungry," Hermione said, pushing Draco forward a bit. A few seconds after Draco had disappeared through the doors, Hermione rushed through, running into Draco's back as planned.

"Watch where you're going, Granger! Gosh, what is this school coming to, where Mudbloods are let loose to run over poor, unsuspecting students?" Draco sneered.

Hermione stood there stunned, had he really called her that. Her anger kicking in, she retorted sharply, "Well I think its ok to run over said students when they're bloody Death Eaters!" making her way angrily over to the Gryffindor table.

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><p>Draco, having seen the pain and then anger flashing in her eyes, realized she had been hurt by his words. He hadn't meant to go that far, but since he was so practiced at hiding his true feelings behind insults, it had just slipped out. Wearily he made his way to the Slytherin table and sat down next to Blaise.<p>

"Hey mate, that was great, you should have seen the rage in her eyes," Blaise congratulated Draco.

Draco shot a glare at his best friend, "Oh shut it…"

"Testy, aren't we? Do you have a thing for the know-it-all or something?"

"What if I did? It doesn't matter anyway," Draco said glumly.

"Wait, really? You have a thing for her? I was joking, but hey its cool with me, I mean once you get past the annoying know-it-all attitude, she is actually kinda cute," Blaise responded.

"Yea, but like I said it doesn't matter, I called her a Mudblood."

"So what, haven't you been doing that since you met her?"

"Yea, well that was before we snogged and I called her all sorts of pet names, she was beginning to see me different, and now I've ruined it," Draco responded, dropping his head in his arms.

"Wow, didn't expect to hear that coming out of your mouth, but I'm confused, why did you call her Mudblood then?"

"Because we didn't want her friends to know we were together, and so we staged that little act, but I took it too far," Draco explained.

"Ah, I see, well I'm sure you'll be able to patch things up. You seem to really care for her, which is something I haven't seen since you were five and your puppy died."

Gazing at the back of her head, Draco whispered, "I hope so."

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><p>Hermione was furious, with herself, with Draco, and with her food, which she was in the process of trying to eat, but it couldn't seem to stay on her fork. She set her fork down, her hand shaking slightly, she was that mad.<p>

Harry hesitated, before asking, "You ok, 'Mione?"

"I'm fine, why wouldn't I be fine," Hermione asked, sarcasm dripping from every syllable.

"Um…" Ron started.

"Yes Ronald, what dumb thing do you have to say now?" Hermione asked meanly, her anger causing her to lash out at the nearest outlet. Hermione stormed out of the Hall, leaving her two best friends shell-shocked and hurt.

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><p>Leaving the castle, Hermione made her way to the edge of the lake. Sitting down she let the cold water lap onto her toes as she tried to calm down. She couldn't believe him, she had trusted him, and had started to admit she might be falling for him and he went and called her a 'Mudblood'. She was furious at him for it, but she was also furious at herself for believing it so readily. Dropping her head onto her knees, she admitted to herself that she was ashamed as well, she had let him kiss her, and even now she longed for the comfort that being in his arms had brought. Exhaustion washed over her, and a lone tear streaked down her cheek as she fell asleep.<p>

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><p>Draco paced back and forth in front of the fireplace, waiting for Hermione to show up. It was well past curfew, and he was starting to get worried, when the portrait creaked open, and an exhausted and slightly muddy Hermione stepped inside.<p>

"Hermione, thank Merlin you're ok," Draco cried out, trying to grabbing her hands to pull her to him.

"Leave me alone," she mumbled softly, jerking her hands away, "haven't you done enough already?"

"Hermione please let me explain…..please?"

Looking up through the sheen of tears, she saw the desperate look on his face, "Fine, you have five minutes."

"Earlier when we were acting and pretending to hate each other, that's exactly what I was doing, pretending," Hermione snorted in disbelief, but Draco continued, "I've gotten very good at it, because I've been doing it for the past two years. And I've been doing it because I like you Hermione, well at least at first, but now I think I've fallen in love with you this past year. I know I've been a prat, but Hermione, I was miserable knowing you were mad at me and then you ran off and I was terrified. I'll shout my feelings for you from the Headmaster's podium if you want me to, I'll even let Potter and Weasel do what they may to me, just please forgive me. Please…"

Hermione stood still, her head down, her eyes trained on her feet, as she whispered, "You don't have to shout it from anywhere, but I'm not in the condition to forgive you right now. I need to sleep on it and clear my head, and decide if this is what I really want. I'll talk to you tomorrow." Moving to her bedroom door, she turned right before she entered, and told him, "And thanks for being worried, but I was fine, I had just fallen asleep."

Draco closed his eyes, hope and anxiety warring inside him. The fact that she was thinking on it gave him hope, but the idea that she might not forgive him and give up on their fragile relationship, scared the living daylights out of him. Sighing, Draco entered his room, preparing himself for a long, sleepless night.

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><p>I can't believe chapter 11 is done, its mind boggling, especially since I've never written more than 4 chapters of a fanfiction. Its really hard to keep up with this story, but I'm trying, so I'm sorry if things are a bit muddled. Btw, sorry about the fight, but they do get back together. Hope ya like it, and stay tuned for chapter 12.<p> 


	12. Chapter 12

Hey, here's chapter 12, hope y'all like it.

Disclaimer: I…own…nothing….

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><p>Draco didn't see Hermione the next morning as he left to go to class, so he assumed she wasn't ready to talk to him. Regretting his actions more than ever, he walked to Charms, meeting Blaise on the way.<p>

"Hey mate, how ya doing?" Blaise asked, looking at his best friend, "Because judging by your appearance, I'd say horrible…you look like shit."

"Thank," Draco drawled sarcastically, before sighing and running a hand through his hair, "I feel like shit too…"

"She didn't forgive you, huh?"

"She said she needed time, she told me she needed to think about everything and if we're worth it…" Draco replied glumly.

"Ouch, I'm sorry mate, even if you did screw up, that's gotta be hard."

Draco looked up at the precise moment that Hermione and Ginny were passing on a different stairwell, and their eyes met before Hermione looked away. Catching the faint glimpse of possible tears, Draco responded, "This is all my fault anyway…I wouldn't blame her if she didn't want to continue anything with me. It'll hurt like hell, but I would deal with it if that's what would make her happy. Now come on, enough soul searching, we gotta get to class."

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><p>Hermione was trying hard to hold back tears after she had seen Draco, he'd looked so miserable and looked like he hadn't gotten a wink of sleep. She wanted to put him out of his misery and just throw herself at him and tell him she forgave him, but she needed to sort out the depth of her feelings and find out if she could allow herself to trust him. Which means she'd have to avoid being alone with him, which would be hard, seeing as they shared the Head tower, but it was what she needed. Shaking her head she turned back to want Ginny was saying, now wasn't the time to think about things.<p>

"And then Ron came out wearing a skirt and told me he was gay…" Ginny said, flippantly, looking at Hermione.

"WHAT?"

"It's about time you listen to me, I've been talking to you, and you've been staring off into space," the redhead scolded lightly.

"Sorry, I have a lot on my mind right now," Hermione replied.

"Does it have anything to do with the scene in the Great Hall?"

Hermione nodded with a miserable look on her face, "He told me he was just pretending, and has been for the past few years, because he's secretly been in love with me. And that because he was so used to pretending that the 'Mudblood' just slipped out."

"Well in my opinion, I think you can trust him. I saw the look on his face, he looked like he had just lost his best friend in the world. I can't believe I'm actually saying this, but think you can trust him when he says he loves you. If he didn't he would have really humiliated you in front of everyone, but he didn't."

Hermione remained silent, thinking over what her friend had said, before saying, "Well I've gotta get to class, talk to you later."

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><p>Hermione made it through class, though she didn't really pay attention to anything the professor had been saying. Making her way down the halls, she didn't notice Blaise had approached her until he spoke, "Hey, Granger, er, Hermione."<p>

"What do you want, Zabini?"

The Italian stepped in front of the brunette, "I want to talk to you about Draco."

"I don't want to talk about him right now," she replied, trying to push past him.

"Come on, just hear me out, then you can do whatever you want," he pleaded.

"Fine," she agreed reluctantly, allowing herself to be led to a quiet spot where they could talk.

"Now, I know you and Draco have something going, he told me, and I normally don't interfere, but I can tell he really loves you. And if I'm not mistaken, you love him too, or else you wouldn't have taken such offense to the scene in the Great Hall,' Blaise said, "But there is something you need to know about Draco. He has never been comfortable with the thought of love, he grew up with two parents, that were always insulting each other and hurting each other, but still claim they love each other. He also was treated like that when he was older, especially by his father, who claims to love him, but pushes Draco to do things that he thinks are wrong."

"But he can say no, you know."

"You're right, he could, but Lucius doesn't enjoy being told no, and would probably end up killing him. Draco didn't lie when he said he was pretending to hate you, to hide his true feelings. I just wanted to let you know that there might be times, where he'll say things that might be hurtful. He's not doing it because he doesn't love you, or he can't be trusted. He fights against his love for you everyday, because he's afraid to be loved, because of the experiences of love he's seen in his life. So subconsciously, he will say things to try and ruin your relationship, before he can be hurt."

"I see…I didn't know any of that…" Hermione said quietly, "So you're saying I should forgive him and forget?"

Blaise shook his head ruefully, "I can't tell you want to do, that is entirely up to you. But I know you'll both be miserable until you make up."

"Well…thanks, I'll be thinking about what you said," she said before getting up and going to class.

She was late…the bookworm, know-it-all Hermione Granger was late. Panting a bit, she walked into Potions, keeping her eyes on the floor as she sat down next to Draco.

"Hey…" Draco whispered hesitantly.

"Hi…we need to talk later…" Hermione whispered back, "Meet me in the common room before supper."

Nodding in agreement, Draco pointed to Professor Slughorn, who was passing out assignments. The two started on their work, brewing a simple Hiccup Solution, each dreading their upcoming conversation.

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><p>Hermione had finished her last class for the day and was currently attempting to hunt her two best friends down. She really wanted to apologize for her behavior, she had been wrong to take her frustration and feelings out on them. Spotting Ron's infamous red hair, she bustled towards them. She took in their wary gazes, as she said, "Hi…"<p>

"Hi Hermione…" Harry said cautiously, while Ron just grunted in response.

"Can I talk to you guys?"

Harry looked at Ron, before nodding and walking into an empty classroom. When they were seated and looking at her expectantly, she started, "I wanted to apologize to you guys, I was an awful friend earlier, I was upset and angry, and I took it out on you two. I shouldn't of, and I'm asking if you'll forgive me."

"Of course 'Mione, we put up with your bossiness and temper all the time, a little display of anger isn't going to scare us away…right Ron?" Harry said, looking at his best mate.

"Right," Ron agreed reluctantly, still kind of miffed, but they knew he'd get over it soon enough, especially when the next Potions assignment was due.

"So now what shall we do," Hermione asked them, linking her arms through theirs.

"Well we have homework…" Ron left the sentence hanging.

Chuckling at her friend's obvious, unspoken question, she said, "Well then by all means let's go."

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><p>Done! I hope it makes sense and you like it. I've been neglecting this story lately in lieu of my other Dramiones, and it makes me feel horrible. Please tell me what you thought, but try to refrain from being rude. :D<p> 


	13. Chapter 13

Hey, hope you are enjoying the story…

Disclaimer: Don't own Harry Potter…

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><p>"Ron, you can't use the "Grim" as a prediction anymore, remember, you've already done it and we all know the Sirius was the "Grim", even Trelawney," Hermione said exasperated as she tired to help Ron and Harry think of predictions and signs for Divination.<p>

"Well, then what do we put…?"

Hermione posed, thinking before she exclaimed, "Tell her you saw a vision of a ferret on a broom, she'll love it, she'll think it has to do with Dra—I mean, Malfoy."

"Brilliant, 'Mione, I'll even add a bit about how said ferret fell off his room and ended up getting his arse beaten by a flying lion," Ron said happily, completely oblivious to Hermione's change in attitude and her slip-up. But Harry didn't miss it, looking at her questioningly he tried to get her to met his eye, which she avoided.

"Well anyway, you two, I'll be going, so I'll talk to you guys at supper," Hermione said, getting up and gathering her stuff.

"Ok, bye," Ron said, furiously scribbling on his parchment.

"Bye 'Mione, I'll talk to you later…" Harry responded, conveying his message as he caught her eyes, he wanted to know what was going on.

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><p>Rushing up the stairs, all Hermione could think of was her imminent talk with Draco and the tiny ferrets that were bouncing and playing in her stomach. She knew now that she wanted to make up with the blonde Slytherin and she planned on telling him. She paused at the painting, wanting to catch her breath before she entered. Breathing under control, and the ferrets still wreaking havoc, she entered the common room. Looking up from his reading, Draco's eyes met Hermione's and the ferrets kicked it up a notch, causing the fluttery feeling to spread.<p>

"Hey," Draco said, patting the spot next to him on the couch.

Walking over to him, Hermione tried to get her breathing under control, which failed, causing her to sound breathless as she replied, "Hi…"

"You can sit down, I promise I won't bite…hard," Draco said, smiling.

Settling on the edge of the couch, Hermione started to speak, "I'm sorry…"

"I'm sorry…" they spoke at the same time, which caused them both to laugh nervously.

"Go ahead…"

"I'm sorry…I didn't give you a chance to explain yesterday…I'm still wary of what we have, but I'm willing to forgive and continue to see where this might lead," Hermione said, blushing slightly.

"Hermione, you don't have to apologize, you had a right to be upset, I should never had said that…especially since I love you," Draco said, "I really do love you…you know."

"I believe you, and I forgive you. I do think however, that we need to get to know each other more and snog a bit less…" Hermione smiled slightly.

"Thank you, Hermione…" Draco responded, before sighing, "And okay, no snogging."

Chuckling at Draco's theatrics, Hermione leaned over and said, "I didn't say no snogging, just less."

Perking up considerably, Draco captured Hermione's lips and proceeded to kiss her quite thoroughly. Ten minutes had passed when Hermione pushed Draco away and said, "Oh my, its dinner, I told Ron and Harry I'd meet them for dinner."

"Well then let's go," Draco said, straightening up a bit and holding a hand out to Hermione, and saying cheekily, "Oh and you might want to straighten up a bit as well…I was a bit enthusiastic about mussing it up."

Staring up at Draco, Hermione tried to calm her already unruly hair, before placing her hand in his and standing up, "Ready!"

The halls were again strangely empty as the pair made their way down to the Great Hall. Pausing before entering, Draco proceeded to straighten Hermione's hair a bit more, "There, now you don't look like you have been completely ravished…"

Rolling her eyes, Hermione replied, "Thanks, I'm going to go in now."

"Hold it," Draco said, grabbing ahold of her hand again, "It's time we let everyone know about us."

"You mean…?"

Nodding, Draco said, "Yep, I'm going with you."

Turning the couple walked hand in hand into the Great Hall, ignoring the various gasps, shouts and general upheaval their holding hands had caused. Releasing Hermione's hand, Draco grasped her face in both his hands and kissed her firmly and squarely on the mouth, causing the upheaval to burst into complete and utter chaos.

"I'll see you later, dear," Draco said, letting Hermione go and walking to his table.

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><p>"Wow, mate, didn't think you had it in you, but that was brilliant," Blaise congratulated, "Just look at Weasley and Potters faces."<p>

"I don't care that it made them mad, I just thought it was time to make our relationship official," Draco replied calmly, taking a sip of his pumpkin juice.

"Well whether you meant to or not, that was awesome…" Blaise responded, turning back to his food.

When Hermione sat down at the Gryffindor table, Ron exploded, "What the bloody hell was that?!"

"That dear Ronald, was me kissing my boyfriend," Hermione replied, calmly sipping her pumpkin juice.

Choking, Ron asked, "You're what! Since when is the ferret your b-boyfriend, he's our bloody enemy!"

"It's none of your business, and stop being childish, he's not our enemy just because you don't like him," Hermione said, helping herself to food.

"Me, being childish," Ron snorted, "You're the one who thinks it's okay to have Draco bloody Malfoy as a boyfriend. And he should be your enemy, for all you know he's a Death Eater, and therefore a danger to everyone, especially Harry."

Hermione glanced over at Harry, wanting to see how her actions had affected him. He was smiling a bit, "'Mione I'm happy that you're happy, but I hope you know what you're getting into. Ron might be right, he could be a Death Eater, I just hope you're not crushed if it turns out he is. But other than that, I'm glad you finally found someone you like, I've wondered if you were ever going to date someone. And you should warn him that if he ever breaks your heart, that I will break his face…"

Smiling at Harry's big brother like speech, she hugged him and said, "Thank you, Harry, I always knew there was a reason you were my favorite."

Ron glared at Hermione, who just stuck her tongue out at him, and continued to eat, ignoring Ron's flippant and sarcastic remarks about Draco.

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><p>REVIEW!<p> 


	14. Chapter 14

Here you go, Chapter 14…lol, I haven't been having inspiration lately. So I hope you like this chapter, I've slowly been writing new chapters for all my stories, but it takes a while.

Disclaimer: Me no own Harry Potter….:(

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><p>The next day Hermione was all but skipping through the halls, on her way to the library, on her way to meet Ron and Harry. Passing through the doors, she spotted the two, who seemed to be in a heated whispered debate. Walking over, she said happily, "Hello you guys, what's up?"<p>

The two stopped arguing immediately and Ron said, forcing a smile, "Hey 'Mione…"

Harry glared at Ron, and smiled genuinely at Hermione, and asking, "Hi, and nothing much, I'm just in the process of telling Ron that he's a complete idiot…"

"What else is new?" Hermione asked.

"'Mione," Ron wailed, a hurt look on his face.

"Ron, you know, you're one of my best friends in the world, but you do have quite a lot of dumb moments..." Hermione replied, patting his arm.

"Thanks…" Ron muttered derisively.

Sitting down next to Harry, Hermione pulled out her half completed Potions essay. Causing both boys to look over at her eagerly, rolling her eyes, she said, "You guys are not getting me to write your essays, you're never going to learn anything if I do it for you."

"But 'Mione, you know Harry and I are horrible at potions…" Ron whined.

"Yea Hermione, we are perfectly dreadful…"

"Regardless, I'm not helping you! Consider it your punishment for your behavior when I told you about Draco, Ron," Hermione said, furiously scribbling.

"Stop calling him that!" Ron shouted, causing Madam Pince to glare at him.

"But Hermione, I didn't act like that…" Harry said with a whipped puppy dog look on his face.

"I know Harry, and I love you for it but," Hermione replied, giving the black haired boy a smile, "it wouldn't be fair to only help you, so this time you both are on your own."

"Thanks Ron," Harry replied grumpily, before getting up, "Well bye Hermione, I'll see you later. This git and I have Quidditch practice…"

"Yea, bye 'Mione, wait hey!" Ron cried, the insult finally sinking in.

Chuckling to herself as she listened to her friends bicker on their way out, Hermione continued to write her essay. Ten minutes later, she was so absorbed in writing the different properties of the Draught of Living Death that she didn't hear anyone come up behind her. She was on her last paragraph when a voice behind her caused her to turn around.

"There you are, my love," Draco said smoothly.

When she turned, she found Draco standing there with a beautiful blood red rose, smiling, she said, "Hi there…"

"This is for you," Draco said, bending down and lightly kissing her.

Reaching out for the flower, Hermione gasped when her finger got pricked with a thorn, "Ow, stupid thorns!"

Draco grabbed her hands, and gently put her injured finger into his mouth, causing Hermione to shiver. She pulled her hand back, embarrassed, and Draco let her.

"See, it's all better now," Draco said, smiling down at her.

Hermione, blushing bright red, whispered, "Thank you…"

Plopping down in the seat next to her, he asked, "So what are you doing? How many extra feet have you written?"

"Why'd you ask what I've doing, if you already know? And I think its 3 or 4…" Hermione replied.

"This is why I love you…" Draco said winking, before giving Hermione a pleading look, "I haven't started mine yet…"

Secretly smiling at Draco's blatant but unasked question, Hermione clucked, "Shame on you…and no I'm not going to help you. I swear you're as bad as Harry and Ron."

"But…" Draco pouted, "You wouldn't want your boyfriend to fail, would you? I mean, do you really want that on your conscience…"

Sighing, she looked at him, "You're not going to stop until I agree, huh?"

Grinning impishly, Draco replied, "Exactly the plan, my dear…"

"Fine, I'll help you…"

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><p>A week later, Hermione was lounging in their common room when Draco strolled in. Walking over to Hermione, he waved a paper in her face, "I have to thank you, because this is the best grade I've gotten this year…"<p>

Grabbing the paper, Hermione scanned the top, focusing in on the grade, "How did you get a higher grade than I did?"

"I'm just that amazing…" Draco replied arrogantly.

"Belt it, I wrote it, you didn't bloody well do anything!" Hermione shouted.

"Tsk tsk, Hermione I should wash your mouth out…" Draco drawled.

"Oh, shush, you know, this just shows that Snape favors you," Hermione said, unkindly

"That's ridiculous…" Draco sniffed, "He does not favor me, more than likely he knew you wrote it, and graded mine higher to get to you. He's a slimy arse, you know…"

"That does sound like something he would do, and I always have wondered if he knew that I wrote Harry's and Ron's essays before…" Hermione replied, laying her head back tiredly.

"Well, of course he knew you'd written them, Potter and Weasel aren't exactly the brightest wands in the bunch, you know…" Draco said, smiling at Hermione's small glare.

"I have to agree, even if they are my best friends, they aren't good at Potions at all. Sorry about getting irritated at you…" she apologized.

"Apology accepted…" he said, smirking at her and holding out a hand.

Accepting his hand, she let him pull her up and into his arms. Smiling down at her, Draco lowered his head and kissed her sweetly. After he pulled away, Hermione laid her head on his shoulder and said, "I love when you do that."

"So do I," Draco replied and then said, "Sleep with me…"

"What!"

"Not like that," Draco responded, smirking, "Gosh, I didn't know you had such a gutter mind."

Blushing, Hermione said, "You can't blame me to thinking that, especially after how you've kissed me before. But I think it would be nice, but don't you dare try anything, I have a few hexes I've been practicing and more practice wouldn't hurt…"

Grinning, he said, "Aw, you're no fun…but I promise…"

Hermione blushed furiously, as Draco took her hand and led Hermione to his bedroom. Handing her a shirt of his, he left to go to the bathroom to change, leaving Hermione to change into the shirt in the privacy of his room. A few minutes later Draco returned and started to question his promise to Hermione, she looked so good in his shirt. Shaking off his thoughts, he helped Hermione into his bed, blew out the candles and proceeded to join her. As they lay in the dark, Draco whispered, "You know, I might have to give you that shirt…"

Hermione cocked her head at him, "Why…?"

"Because it looks a hell of a lot better on you than it ever did on me," Draco replied, chuckling when Hermione hid her face in his chest.

"I like wearing your shirt…it smells like you," Hermione said, sounding muffled as she spoke against his chest.

Hugging her tight, Draco responded, "Well you don't need a ratty old shirt, you have me now…but I guess you can still keep the shirt."

Hermione sighed blissfully, as she snuggled closer and closed her eyes. Draco looked at her sleeping face as his smile faded from his face. His father had been pushing him about his mission lately, and he wanted an update. In all the happiness of Hermione agreeing to go out with him, he'd forgotten all about it…his father would not be pleased, nor would Voldemort. Frowning, Draco forcefully pushed all thoughts of the mission away and concentrated on the feeling of Hermione in his arms. He'd think about the mission tomorrow.

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><p>I hope you liked it, please review!<p> 


	15. Chapter 15

Hello my lovely readers! It has been 3 years since I last updated this story and I want to apologize. I let this story get pushed to the wayside in lieu of other stories. But now I'm picking it back up and will be taking turns between this one and 'Saving My Destined One'.

Two points that I have to point out, is how adorable is a slightly grumpy Draco? :) And the other thing is that I find it awesome that my name is in the Harry Potter books! Leanne (my real name is spelled different though) is not a really common name, so I find it cool! Anyway, on to the story, I hope you enjoy it! It's starting to get more drama-filled and slightly darker.

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, as cool as that would be… :)

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><p>The sun was shining brightly when Hermione woke up the next day. Trying to sit up she found a pair of strong arms wrapped around her, preventing her from moving. Resigning herself to staying in bed, she studied Draco. In sleep he was so relaxed and innocent and not to mention his eyelashes! As a girl she was incredibly drawn to and jealous of them. Smiling, she was content to watch him until he woke up. As that thought entered her mind, the boy in question started stirring. One eye popped open and he took in the sight of his girlfriend gazing at him.<p>

"You know, as much as I enjoy that you enjoy looking at me, it's kind of embarrassing," Draco mumbled, turning his face into the pillow.

Hermione chuckled, "Then wake up sleepyhead!"

He scowled and tried to pull the comforter over his head, "I don't want to, it's too bloody early!"

"It's 8 o'clock."

"It's still too early," Draco replied his voice muffled from under the comforter.

She smiled at his antics, "I'm guessing you're not a morning person, are you?"

"What made you get that idea?"

"Well then I guess you need a reason to like mornings," Hermione replied as she grabbed the comforter and pulled it off his head. Before he had a chance to grab the blanket and yank it back, she leaned down and gave him a gentle kiss. As she started to pull back, Draco grabbed her and pulled her back to him and kissed her again. After a few minutes, he let her pull back, smiling at her flushed cheeks.

"If that's how mornings start, then I'm sure I'd like them a whole lot more," he said, grinning up at her, "Anyway, we should probably get up, I couldn't go back to sleep after something like that."

With another kiss, Hermione left his room to get dressed in her own. Smiling happily, she thought about how different he was from how she thought he had been. She had never been so happy to be wrong in her life. When she was done getting dressed, she met Draco in their common room.

"Shall we go? I want to eat breakfast before the trip to Hogsmeade."

The pair made their way to breakfast, making it there before many other students.

"Do you want to sit at my table with me?" Draco asked hesitantly.

"Sure!"

As they were eating, Ron and Harry came down and noticed that their best friend was sitting elsewhere. Stuffing food in his mouth, Ron mumbled, "It feels like we're losing her to Malfoy, doesn't it?"

"Don't worry Ron, she's not going to forget us just because she dating the ferret," Harry replied, trying to be the sensible one.

"If you say so," Ron said skeptically as the two of them watched the couple leave.

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><p>Draco and Hermione stopped by their rooms to get their things for their trip to Hogsmeade. As Draco was getting his things, he heard a tapping at the window. He opened it and his family's owl, Ignatius flew in and held out his leg to Draco. He took the note and Ignatius flew back out. Opening the note, he read:<p>

_Shrieking Shack at noon, don't be late!_

There was no signature, but Draco didn't need one to know that it was from his father. His father didn't waste time on being polite; instead he preferred to get straight to the point. Rereading the note, Draco sighed, he had been looking to his first Hogsmeade visit with Hermione. As he grabbed his things and met up with Hermione, all he could think of was how he was dreading meeting with his father and telling him how he hadn't been working on the mission.

Noticing his silence, Hermione asked, "Are you okay?"

Her question breaking him out of his thoughts, Draco smiled, "Yea, I'm okay, just thinking."

"Good," she replied, grabbing his hand and dragging him out the carriages that would take them to Hogsmeade.

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><p>The first place they went to was Honeydukes, where Hermione learned of Draco's secret sweet tooth. His favorites were anything with chocolate, which made her laugh, since she had never pegged him for a chocoholic.<p>

"How many packages of chocolate frogs are you buying," Hermione asked laughingly, as she watched him drop a bunch of chocolate frogs on top of the growing pile of sweets.

Giving her a look, Draco replied, "One can never have enough chocolate, my dear."

Her reply was to shake her head and laugh, as he finally stopped his stockpile and paid for it. After the clerk had bagged it up, the pair left lugging the large bag along with them.

As they were walking through the town, Draco spotted a new shop called Magic Trinkets that sold jewelry. He yanked on Hermione's arm and dragged her into the shop.

"May I help you?" A shopkeeper asked, walking over to the pair.

Draco set his bag of chocolate down and replied, "Yes, I want to get my girlfriend something."

Hermione blushed at his words…it was still so strange to hear him telling other people that they were boyfriend and girlfriend.

"I understand, we have many rings, necklaces and bracelets," the shopkeeper prattled on, removing items from the display cases and setting them on the counter. But Draco's eyes were drawn to a silver heart shaped locket with etched intertwining hearts with the word "Forever" etched across the hearts.

"That one," he said, point to the locket, "and please engrave our names on the inside, Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy."

"Right away sir," the shopkeeper replied, hurrying away to do what he had been asked.

In a few moments, the shopkeeper came back with the locket and Draco paid for it and thanked the shopkeeper. Turning to Hermione, he gestured for her to turn around. After he had fastened in, he gently removed her hair from the circle of the necklace and brushing her hair aside he placed a quick kiss on the back of her neck.

"Um, Draco…" Hermione's voice was shy and when he turned her around her face was bright red.

Chuckling a bit at her innocent reaction, Draco gave her a quick peck on the cheek, "Let's get out of here and get something to eat."

The two made their way to The Three Broomsticks and settled at a table. After they had ordered two butterbeers and their lunch, Draco excused himself to use the restroom.

Draco snuck out of the restroom and cast a Disillusionment charm on himself, which allowed him to sneak out of The Three Broomsticks without Hermione seeing him. He felt bad for lying to Hermione, but he couldn't exactly tell her where he was going.

* * *

><p>He made it to the Shrieking Shack at exactly noon and true to his word, his father was there.<p>

"How is the mission you were assigned to complete going?" Lucius Malfoy drawled, without even so much as a greeting for his son.

Draco fidgeted, "It's been unsuccessful, father, Dumbledore is a hard wizard to get close to."

"I see…and your lack," Lucius paused, "couldn't possibly be because of the filthy Mudblood you have associated yourself with, now could it?"

"Don't call her that!" Draco snarled.

Drawing out his wand, Lucius caressed it, "Well well well, it looks like you have it bad, Draco. I shall have to teach you a lesson on cavorting with Mudbloods! _Crucio!_"

He fell to the ground and Draco gritted his teeth as the curse overtook him in an effort to not make a sound. But soon the pain became so unbearable and he cried out, his body thrashing around uncontrollably. The pain eased and Draco drew in a shaky breath, but his father wasn't finished.

"_Crucio!_ Mudbloods are not worth our time, you have a mission and this filthy girl is distracting you from it! I would spend more time focusing on what you are supposed to be doing or else the girl may find something worse than torture happening to her."

Lucius stopped the curse and stood over Draco as he took shallow breaths and tried to recover from the Unforgivable curse. Reaching into his pocket with his gloved hand, Lucius pulled out a necklace. Pointing his wand at it and the necklace was wrapped in a paper and tied with a string.

"Since you claim Dumbledore is such a difficult man to get close to, you are to find different tactics," Lucius said, "Find a way to get this to Dumbledore and you'll prove that you aren't a total waste of my time."

Lucius tossed the package at Draco and left. The blond haired boy picked it up, his hand shaking; he really didn't want to do this. But what choice did he have? He would do anything to keep Hermione from getting hurt, even if it meant destroying any chance he had of being happy with her.

Casting another Disillusionment charm on himself, he made his way back to The Three Broomsticks. Still under the charm, he made his way close to Madame Rosmerta and whispered, "_Imperio!_"

Making his way to the back, he bade the woman to follow. Once they were away from prying eyes, he gave her the package and commanded her to pass it on to one of the Gryffindor students to give to Dumbledore. His part of the plan accomplished, he made his way to the restroom and canceled the Disillusionment charm. Before making his way back out to the table, Draco cast a quick cleaning spell on himself, and made his way back to Hermione.

"What took you so long? I was worried!" Hermione exclaimed as she saw Draco and ran up and gave him a hug.

Draco hugged her back, feeling guilty and lied again, "I was feeling a bit peaky, I think we should go back to the castle and have Madame Pompfrey give me a stomachache cure."

"Okay," she replied concerned, but didn't say anymore. Following him out, Hermione was behind him when she heard a commotion. Katie Bell was suspended in the air, her arms outstretched and her mouth open in a scream. Her friend Leanne was crying, trying to pull her cursed friend down. Suddenly Katie collapsed to the ground, her body twitching uncontrollably.

"Move it," the rough voice of Hagrid bellowed, pushing through the crowd of onlookers. Carefully, he wrapped the necklace in the packaging and put it in his pocket. Then gathering the convulsing girl in his arms, he made his way to the castle.

Draco watched the scene in mute horror, things weren't supposed to have worked out like this. As Hermione and Draco made their way to the castle, he felt sick to his stomach and didn't have to lie about not feeling well. But instead of going to the hospital wing, Draco made his way to his room claiming that all he needed to do was lie down for a bit. Once behind closed doors, he cast a locking spell on his door, a silencing charm and broke down.

* * *

><p>On the other side of the door, Hermione stood in anxious concern for her boyfriend. Something had changed today and she wasn't sure what it was exactly, but it was causing Draco worry and pain. Or maybe she had misread it and he really wasn't feeling well and she should leave him alone for now. Sighing, she decided to trust him and hoped he felt better quickly. Making her way to her own room, Hermione closed the door and started studying. It was the only thing that could distract her from the current situation and even then it didn't completely take her mind away from the present.<p>

* * *

><p>Oh and just if anyone is wondering and hasn't read the revised Author Note in chapter 2, this story takes place in the seventh year but has the plot lines from both the Half-Blood Prince and Deathly Hallows. So please let me know what you think, especially how my writing is since I might have improved or changed styles since last updating. Thanks!<p> 


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